Coffee maker



June 26, 1951 v 0. 0. BJCRK COFFEE MAKER Filed Aug. 8, 1949 INVENTOR. BY 2 3 (U Patented June 26, 1951 UNITED STATES PTENT DFFICE COFFEE MAKER Carl 0. Bjork, Wilmington, Calif.

Application August 8, 1949, Serial No. 109,195

3 Claims.

This invention relates to cooking utensils, and particularly relates to coffee makers, and is a continuation in part of my application entitled Coffee Maker, Serial No. 775,547, filed September 22, 1947, now abandoned.

At the present time various devices have been made for home use in brewing coffee, one of the popular methods being by the drip process. In such a process two vessels are provided, the upper one carrying coffee and water and the lower one receiving the liquid from the upper vessel as it drips through a filtering member therebetween after the coffee has been brewed. In this method there is considerable difficulty due to the fact that there is no way to prevent the flow of water to the lower vessel immediately after it has been poured into the upper vessel, and thus a portion of the liquid in the lower vessel does not represent brewed coffee. Furthermore, there is no way to control the rate of flow of liquid from the upper vessel nor the consequent clogging of the filtering member by coffee grounds entrained by rapidly flowing liquid. It is desirable therefore to provide means whereby coffee may be brewed by the drip method in a manner to insure that the coffee and the water may be retained in contact with each other during a specific period before the cofiee is released from the upper vessel to thereby definitely establish the strength of the coffee, and which structure makes it possible to control the rate of flow of the liquid from the upper vessel to the lower vessel. In the present embodiment of the invention a valve structure is provided which supports the coffee in the upper vessel in free contact with the water but out of the path of liquid flow to the lower vessel so as to minimize entrainment of coffee grounds. The invention also provides timing means by which the period of contact between the water and coffee in the upper vessel may be gauged so as to insure uniformity between successive brews.

The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a view in central vertical section showing the complete coffee maker.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view in vertical section as seen on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the device as seen in Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view through the filter centerin device as seen on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, l"

indicates a lower vessel within which the brewed coffee is accumulated, and H indicates an upper vessel adapted to be mounted on the vessel I0 and which receives the coffee and the water. The lower vessel II! is formed with a relatively large mouth l2, provided with a packing ring [3 upon which the lower surface I4 of the upper vessel ll rests and against which the surface I4 is sealed. It will be understood that the upper vessel, as well as the lower vessel, may be made of glass. Centrally of the lower surface I 4 of the upper vessel II there is provided a neck I5 adapted to extend into the lower vessel, which neck circumscribes a drain opening it by which liquid from the upper'vessel II is delivered to the lower vessel It). The top of the upper vessel It is open and formed with a circumferential bead H, the open top providing easy access for the supply of water and coffee to the upper vessel. Either or both of the vessels i0 and I I may be provided with suitable handles,

such as the handle l8 carried by the band [9 encircling the mouth of the lower vessel It].

Removably located within the drain opening it of the neck I5 of the upper vessel I! there is prov a nut 23. The rod 22 also supports and carries a valve disk 24 which is formed of slightly flexible imperforate material and is mounted freely on the rod 22 coaxially therewith. The circumference of the disk 24 is formed equal to the crosssection of the inner surface of the upper vessel I I at the plane of the top of the head 20 when the rod 22 is in the position shown in Fig. 2. In such position the edges '25 of the disk 23 will rest against the sides of the upper vessel. The disk valve 24 is loosely mounted upon the rod 22, longitudinal movement thereover being restrained in downward direction by the upper surface of the head 20 and in upper direction by a stop flange 21 mounted on the rod in spaced relation to the upper surface of the head. The rod 22 is removably supported in central vertical position within the upper vessel l l by a removable cross-head 28 provided with a central threaded aperture 29 through which the rod 22 extends and may be vertically adjusted upon rotation of the rod with renal ends 3| of the cross-head. The inner ends of the retainers 3% are adapted to be received under the bead ll of the mouth of the upper vessel to retain the cross-head in position and are normally urged to such inner position by springs 32, retraction against the tension of the springs being provided by handles Accurate centering of the crossshead with respect to the upper vessel is insured by the provision of dependingspacing lips 34 which engage the opposite inner sides of the upper vessel.

It will be seen that with the parts assembled-gas shown in Fig. 2 cofiee and water may be supplied to the upper vessel and will be retained therein,

the disk valve closing the lower iportioniof the i upper vessel and precluding passage of the brewed coffee to the drain [6 and therethrough' to the lower vessel iii. If desired, leakage of brewed coffee past the edges 25 of the disk may be preeluded by downward-threaded adjustment of the rod through the cross head so as to flex the disk valve, as indicated in Fig. .l giorcin'g the edges tightlyagainst the inner surface of the vessel. When the water has been retained in the-upper vessel in contact with the coiiee a desired time the disk be raised to break its seal with the walls of the vessel by an upward threaded adjustment of the rod with respect to the crosshead. Uponsuch upward adjustment of the rod the head 2d will lift 'the disk to space its edges from the Walls of the vessel permitting the brewed coiiee to pass the edges 25 and filter through the passages 2! into the lower'vessel Hi. It will'cf course be noted that the lifting of the disk is gradual, and that the spacing of its edges 25 :withrespect to the wallsoi the vessel may be accurately regulated to regulate the'rate .of flow of the brewed cottee from the upper vessel to the lower-one. It will also be noted that the disk will support the coffee and that by rotation of the rod 22, the disk 24 may be spaced upwardly such a precise distance from the hemispherical bottom of the vessel H as to allow the brew to escape downward readily past the disk and yet restrain the grounds from escaping with the brew.

As a means for threadedly adjusting the rod-22 and regulating the length of time of contact of the water with the coffee in the upper vessel the upper protruding end of the rod 22 is provided with a bifurcated extension, the furcations 41! of which support thereoetween a pivotally mounted hour-glass type of timer, indicated at M. The casing of the timer ii is of course transparent so that an observer may note the gradual passageof sand or like material from one compartment 'to the other and thus accurately judge the duration of the brewing period.

It will thus be seen that the coifee'maker here disclosed. is decidedly simple in construction, and that its parts may be maintained easily in a sanitary condition, and that by proper manipulation of the coffee maker coffee of a uniform strength may be repeatedly produced whenever thecoffee maker is used. It is to be understood that the parts of the present device may be of metal, glass or any other suitable material.

While I have shown the preferred form of my invention as now known to me, it will be understood that various changes may be made in combination, construction and arrangement'of parts by those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the invention as claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

All)

1. A coffee maker comprising in combinationf a lower vessel; an upper vessel supported thereon and having a narrow guide neck at the center of the lower end thereof; a cross member mounted on said upper vessel at its upper'end; a central rod adjustably mounted on said cross member for vertical movement; a guide member provided on the-lower end of said rod and slideable vertically insaid neck; a shoulder provided on said .rod a short distance above said member; a flexible disk centrally penetrated by and slideable on :saidarod between said member and said shoulder, the outer edge of said disk being adapted to rest on'the bottom of said upper vessel, said bottom islopingout-wardly and upwardly at an angle of approximately forty degrees with horizontal in the "-a'nnu'iar area just outward from the edge of said disk; and threaded means for optionally lowering zsaid rod to presssaid disk {against-said upper vessels "bottom or to -;lift said "disk :a slight distance :above said bottom.

22..A-cofieema=ker comprising in combination: a lower vessel; an upper vessel supported thereon andihaving a hemispherical bottom terminating .in a narrow guide neck at the center thereof; a cross member mounted on the upper end or said upper vessel; a central vertical rod adjustably mounted on said-cross member for vertical movement, the lower-end of said rod being slideably-guided bysaid neck; and a flexible disk concentricwith'rsaid rod and mounted thereon just above saidg-uide neck, the outer edge of said disk being adapted to rest on said bottom of said upper vessel with said disk disposed close to the junctureoi said neck with said vessel bottom; and threadedmeansfor lowering said'rod to press said disk against said vessel bottom and to raise said disk into slightlyspaced relation with said :bottom at will.

3. In combination: a'cofiee brewing-vesselhaving a substantially hemispherical bottom, a cross member mounted'on the upperend of'said vessel; atrod mounted for vertical adjustment on said cross-member in axial relation with saidvessel;

- meansdisposed centrally of said vessel bottom for guiding said "rod a-fiexible disk provided on said rod and adapted :to rest on .a central'portion of-said bettomrand threadedmean-s for optionall-y moving said roddownwardly to apply pressure to said disk to form a seal preventing an-escape of liquid downwardly from said vessel'or to lift said disk to provide :a relatively narrow openin betweensaid disk and saidvessel bottom for the escape of liquid from said vessel downwardly about saiddisk, a passageway being formedibeneat-h saiddisk'for the-downward escape of liquid lay-passing saiddisk.

CARL O. BJORK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are o'f'r-ecor'cl in the file of this :patent:

UNITED 1 STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 49,062 .Ashley Aug. 1, 18'65 246,785 Kappner septpfi, 1881 891,441 Renner June 3, 1908 2,181,578 Cory Nov. 28,1939

FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 375,902 ,France May :27; 1-907 425,087 7 .France 'Mar.'28, 19 1.1 

